Shigetomi — Restaurant in Kyoto

This is going to be a very lengthy and thorough review so please bare with me. I will include a summary below.

Please beware if you are a tourist. My husband and I went to this sushi restaurant because it was conveniently located near our hotel, but I wish we had taken the extra effort to hop on a bus/subway and go to a legitimate sushi restaurant.

When we first walked in, the restaurant was empty. Mind you it was a Friday night. It stayed this way for the whole time we were there. When we were first sat, they ONLY had English menu’s. We were skeptical because the prices shown on the English menu were not accurate to that shown on the Tabelog website. The prices were JP¥1000 more expensive.

When we were ready to order, the host lady forced us to order drinks. Water and hot tea are NOT free. They are JP¥200-220 each. At every other restaurant we’ve been to in Japan (Tokyo and Kyoto) they have all been free.

Once we ordered our food, it took over 20 minutes for us to receive our food. Mind you, we were the only guests. In those 20 minutes, we constantly heard the chef throwing away things and whispering to the host. We didn’t think anything of this until we got our food.

My husband and I both ordered the “Chef Seasonal Selection (10 pieces nigiri)” which was JP¥3300 + two green tea’s which were JP¥200 each. Once the host lady came and gave us our sushi plates, I was in disbelief at how TINY they were. It was almost a kid’s size. For JP¥3300. Additionally, there was no salmon, no scallops, it was all white fish and two pieces of tuna.

Now getting to the quality of the sushi, it made sense why they were actively throwing things away. The fish was chewy, EXTREMELY fishy and stringy. Everything sushi from Japan shouldn’t be. I have never had sushi this bad in my life, and I have visited plenty of countries my whole life. I truly believed that the fish/seafood we were served were spoiled, as it was a bit odd to experience eating hard, chewy and fishy seafood/fish, ESPECIALLY in Japan. The whole time we were eating, the host lady was staring us down. This made the experience even worse.

We quickly wrapped up our meals and just tried to get out of there as fast as we can. We just quickly paid, and hopped on a train to another sushi restaurant (which we should’ve done this whole time).

Please beware if you are a tourist. Just because it is close by, doesn’t mean it’s always the best. This was the worst sushi experience I’ve ever had in my life…and it was in Japan.

Summary of Red Flags 🚩 NO customers. The whole time. ONLY had English menus pre-placed. Water or tea is NOT free. JP¥200-220 each. Took over 20 minutes to receive our food from ordering. We were the only guests. Host was actively throwing away “things”. We suspect that he might’ve been throwing away bad fish/seafood. Fish tasted SPOILED. Fish is not supposed to be hard, chewy and taste like rotting ocean water. The host lady and chef were staring us down the whole time we were eating, as if to look for a reaction. Prices were SO expensive for 10 tiny pieces of sushi (JP¥3300). You could have a full belly paying this much at multiple other...

Absolutely delicious. A completely lovely experience.

The sushi is delicious, and handmade with a passion and dedication for the art. His wife is hostess/waitress, everything. Her English is pretty good and there is an English menu.

Remove your shoes at the door, enjoy the comfy traditional horigotatsu seating (recess under the table for legs/feet), and be sure to order a glass of their Kyoto local umeshu on the rocks. Super refreshing and the best I've had yet.

The sushi was so good that we forgot to take a picture of the first plate at all and only remembered to take a picture of the second plate when we were nearly done eating!

Definitely try the otoro (fatty tuna) and if you like unagi (or even dislike it for being too strong), make sure to order some anago. It's lighter in flavor than unagi and delicious.

There is limited seating; about 16 seats. One private room of 6, a table of 4 in the main room, and about 6 seats at the bar. You could probably squish more at the table ends if you needed to.

Totally delicious and exceptional service. They even both walk exiting customers to the door to thank you and give...

Stumbling upon this sushi restaurant late at night turned into one of the most memorable experiences of our entire trip to Japan. We happened to be the only guests at the time, which made the evening feel so personal and special—like a private moment we’ll never forget.

The owners were incredibly kind and welcoming. They not only served us some of the most delicious and fresh sushi we’ve had, but also took the time to chat with us, offer great recommendations, and even teach us a few Japanese phrases like “Oishi desu!”—a phrase we’ve proudly used throughout our travels.

What truly touched us was their thoughtfulness. When it started to rain unexpectedly at the end of the night, they offered us one of their umbrellas without hesitation. It was such a simple but generous gesture that perfectly captured the warmth and hospitality we felt throughout our meal.

This spot is more than just a sushi restaurant—it’s a place where you feel truly cared for. We recommend it to anyone looking for not just a fantastic meal, but a heartwarming...